The trading week began with a sharp weakening of the US currency against the euro and the pound. Optimistic statistics on inflation and the reduction in the unemployment rate in the Eurozone to 9.1% (a minimum since 2009) caused a significant demand for a single currency.
Yesterday's economic reports from the US were ambiguous. In June, the index of pending sales in the real estate market increased by 1.5%, which is more than the forecasted value of 0.7%. At the same time, the Chicago Business Activity Index declined by 10.3% to 58.9.
The Reserve Bank of Australia, as expected, left the key interest rate at the previous level of 1.50%. The regulator said that a high exchange rate will put pressure on the consumer prices and the labor market. Since the beginning of this year, the Australian dollar has increased against the US dollar by more than 11%.
In the Asian trading session, the quotations of the WTI crude oil futures exceeded $50 per barrel against the background of an increase in the index of business activity in the manufacturing sector of China from Caixin.
Market Indicators
SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:SPY)) moved away from historical highs and closed at 246.91 USD (-0.12%).
Yesterday, the major US stock indices showed mixed results: SPY (-0.06%), DIA (0.31%), QQQ (-0.42%).
At the moment, the 10-year US government bonds yield is at 2.30%.
The Dollar Index closed the trading session in the negative zone (-0.47%).
Today we recommend you to pay attention to the following economic reports:
- The index of business activity in the manufacturing sector of Germany at 10:55 (GMT+3:00);
- A report on the labor market in Germany at 10:55 (GMT+3:00);
- The index of business activity in the manufacturing sector of the UK at 11:30 (GMT+3:00);
- Preliminary data on the GDP of the Eurozone at 12:00 (GMT+3:00);
- The index of business activity in the manufacturing sector of the US from ISM at 17:00 (GMT+3:00).